Tag: resieliency

Wayne Torres (08:00) will celebrate his fifth year of sobriety this November. It always seemed normal to him to use alcohol to celebrate special events, to cope with stress, and just because. To help manage the difficulty of his job as a Lieutenant at a correctional facility, Wayne would drink for 4-5 hours a day. Drinking wasn’t a pleasure for Wayne, it was a necessity to make it through the day. After branding himself ‘a fat drunk who hated life’ Wayne went through a horrific detox that landed him in a coma. His addiction to alcohol nearly killed him. Despite unsuccessful attempts at therapy and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, Wayne found McLean’s Law Enforcement, Active Duty, Emergency Responder (LEADER) program where he received the treatment he needed to overcome his addiction. Now Captain at the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office, Wayne spends time to help his fellow officers when they are struggling. From creating a Peer Support group to driving his coworkers to and from detox centers, Wayne wants everyone who struggles to know they are not alone.

Hear even more about Wayne’s incredible journey and the power of recovery: https://bit.ly/2TP1ayj

The McLean Hospital podcast Mindful Things is intended to provide general information and to help listeners learn about mental health, educational opportunities and research initiatives. This podcast is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice.

© 2019 McLean Hospital. All Rights Reserved.

From the outside, Robert Oxnam (19:51) had it all. He was successful in high school and college, earned a PhD, had a thriving career and was married with two children. What was completely hidden from everyone was the inner torment he was experiencing. In 1990, Robert was diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID), a condition associated with post-traumatic stress due to severe physical, sexual, or emotional abuse during early childhood. Robert and Trevor discuss his initial denial of his diagnosis and how over time, Robert came to realize that his eleven identity states could interact to overcome the painful memories of his childhood abuse – from being held over a pot of boiling water to being locked in an ice box. Robert turned to art-making as a creative outlet and now is a successful sculptor, painter, photographer, and author. Robert also speaks openly about his illness and the abuse that caused it, hoping to inspire others to feel as if they are not alone.

Robert Oxnam’s Story: https://bit.ly/2HwiCpG
The Secret and Life-Changing Impact of Early Childhood Abuse: Dissociative Identity Disorder: https://bit.ly/2HGGgyR
“A Fractured Mind” by Robert Oxnam: https://amzn.to/2CqHMBS

The McLean Hospital podcast Mindful Things is intended to provide general information and to help listeners learn about mental health, educational opportunities and research initiatives. This podcast is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice.

© 2019 McLean Hospital. All Rights Reserved.

Today’s podcast is a particularly emotional one. Trevor talks with Randall Liberty (02:14), Commissioner of the Maine Department of Corrections and a participant in McLean’s Deconstructing Stigma campaign. Randall is no stranger to trauma. As a child, he watched his mother experience frequent bouts of domestic violence from his alcoholic father. As an adult, he has been witness to the scene of more than 30 suicides and 35 fatal accidents during his years in law enforcement. He’s also pulled 19 bodies from lakes, rivers, and streams as a rescue diver, and endured unthinkable amounts of stress, loss, and traumatic events during his time as a battalion commander fighting in the Iraq war. Randall talks candidly about living with PTSD, how he copes, and how it puts him in a unique position to help others. You really do not want to miss this one.

Read more about Randall and his incredible journey: https://bit.ly/2XBrIGx

Today’s podcast is a particularly emotional one. Trevor talks with Randall Liberty (02:14), Commissioner of the Maine Department of Corrections and a participant in McLean’s Deconstructing Stigma campaign. Randall is no stranger to trauma. As a child, he watched his mother experience frequent bouts of domestic violence from his alcoholic father. As an adult, he has been witness to the scene of more than 30 suicides and 35 fatal accidents during his years in law enforcement. He’s also pulled 19 bodies from lakes, rivers, and streams as a rescue diver, and endured unthinkable amounts of stress, loss, and traumatic events during his time as a battalion commander fighting in the Iraq war. Randall talks candidly about living with PTSD, how he copes, and how it puts him in a unique position to help others. You really do not want to miss this one.

Read more about Randall and his incredible journey: https://bit.ly/2XBrIGx

Today, Trevor shares how depression manifests itself physically in his body. Then we talk to Charles King (09:20), a participant in McLean’s Deconstructing Stigma campaign whose story was too compelling not to share. Charles bravely shares his struggles with alcoholism, drug addiction, suicidal thoughts, bipolar disorder, depression, and anxiety. As the son of drug addicted parents, Charles began running drugs for local dealers at just 5 years old and regularly had to provide clean urine samples for his mom to pass off as her own. Charles talks about the physical and mental abuse he suffered as a child and how he only felt loved and accepted when he was on drugs. Now clean and sober, Charles is enrolled in college working towards a nursing degree and currently works as a surgical pathologist.

Charles King’s Story: https://bit.ly/2TW1dZT

As Valentine’s Day draws near, love is in the air and on our minds. Today, Trevor talks candidly about the difficulty his mental illnesses can cause in his dating life. Then we talk to Kirsten Bolton, the program director of McLean’s OnTrack program ( 8:01) who discusses romantic and familial relationships and how mental illness diagnoses can affect them. She also recalls a patient struggling with the thought of sharing their mental illness diagnosis with a romantic partner. Later we are joined by Sean Shinnock, a participant in McLean’s Deconstructing Stigma campaign and Scott O’Brien, co-founder of the Deconstructing Stigma initiative, who have an honest conversation about dating, relationships, and being there for loved ones when they themselves are struggling. Learn more about Sean and his struggles with mental health by reading Sean’s Story.

Deconstructing Stigma site: https://deconstructingstigma.org/

Sean’s Story: https://bit.ly/2UQdIpY

When it comes to our bodies, there are many seemingly unrelated things that can actually affect our mental health and our general feeling of well being. From the foods we put into our body to the amount of exercise we get each day, there is a clear link between our physical health and our mental well being. In this episode, Trevor discusses how depression can sneak up on us at any time and the false sense of security that we create in our minds when we’ve had a series of consecutive ‘good days’. Then we talk to Christopher M. Palmer, MD (5:40) and director of the Department of Postgraduate and Continuing Education at McLean, who has spent the last 20 years working on treatment resistant cases of mental illness and the idea that diet can put psychiatric conditions into remission. Dr. Palmer goes pretty deep and shares lots of interesting information in this one, so check it out!

Even more exciting content from Dr. Palmer:
https://bit.ly/2kJQa6p
https://bit.ly/2HDzWKm

The McLean Hospital podcast Mindful Things is intended to provide general information and to help listeners learn about mental health, educational opportunities and research initiatives. This podcast is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice.

© 2019 McLean Hospital. All Rights Reserved.

Our thoughts and perceptions can shape how we react to situations. Before today’s interview, our trusty host talks about attempting to move past a bout of severe depression. Trevor then sits down with Dr. Kathryn Boger, Program Director of the McLean Anxiety Mastery Program (insert start time of interview),who shares her thoughts on ways to retrain our brains to realize things are not as bad as we initially think. Dr. Boger also discusses child and adolescent mental health, particularly the importance of early detection and early invention in children and adolescents, while also sharing what it was like for her to grow up as an anxious child.

Life often includes many stressful moments, but stress around the holidays can be overwhelming for many people. From feelings of fatigue and isolation to financial stress and unrealistic expectations, it can be difficult to prepare ourselves for the increased stresses the holidays can often bring. In this episode, Trevor talks about his struggles with emotional regulation and what helps ground him. Then we are joined by McLean’s Mark Longsjo, LICSW, who helps remind us that we have more control than we believe and shares some suggestions to help each of us keep things in check.